Roulette Charters

Itinerary:

Summer 2017 - Croatia & Western Mediterranean

The Oyster 655 was conceived and developed
as the "sportiest" yacht in Oysters range.

Rob Humphreys' hull lines were untouched
during the vessels development. The 655 has
a fine bow with little more width internally
than the old Oyster 62 but the beam is carried
aft giving similar volume to the Oyster 72.
This gives a powerful hull form with good
pointing ability to windward and the bonus
of a very large owner's suite aft.

Roulette's development was a response to the
owner's request for an even faster cruising
yacht but one that would loose none of the
marques comfort and luxury. Apart from
the in house Oyster team, the design was
also influenced by John Boyce and Richard
Matthews.

Work started with the rig. Carbon fiber was
chosen because of its combination of lightness
and strength. The Hall spars mast is 2.5m
taller than a standard aluminium one but also
one tonne lighter. This saved another tonne in
the keel whilst also providing a "stiffer" yacht.

A cutter rig combination was rejected because
it is inefficient in the majority of sailing
situations due to an increase in windage.
In storm conditions a detachable inner stay
can be simply rigged and tensioned for a
storm fore sail. The spreaders were swept
back to allow the 105% head sail to be close
hauled for enhanced upwind performance.

The main sail is fully battened with some
roach and stowed in a Hall spars V boom.
The mast track has a shuttle system at its
base to allow the sail to be dropped and
stacked in the boom very quickly and easily.
There is single line reefing for the first of 3
reefs. In storm conditions a trysail can be
quickly and simply rigged.

A small carbon fiber bow sprit or "prodder"
was developed for the asymmetric sail and
the sail wardrobe, by North sails, is completed
by a spinnaker for down wind work.

Deck gear was uprated for the additional loads
generated by the larger sail plan. The standard
chromed winch drums were replaced by
aluminium ones saving over 70 kilograms
and further weight saving were achieved
by using aluminium mooring cleats.

The standard bow roller is massively over
designed but it was felt that this is a good thing
for a cruising boat so no weight reduction was
attempted. It required no strengthening to
support the bow sprit. The 2 stainless wheels
were replaced with carbon ones to save weight
and also achieve a more contemporary look.

The steering pedestals were also redesigned
to reduce their visual impact. Davitts were
considered for the tender but dismissed due
to their weight and aesthetic considerations.

On short passages the tender can be towed,
and on longer ones it is lashed onto the foredeck
complete with its 30hp engine in situ and lifted
by a halyard. On ocean passages it is deflated
and stored in the lazzarette. The lazarrette also
has dedicated space for the dive compressor.
The sail locker forward has a small compressor
to inflate the tender and the ships "toys".